1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a method and an apparatus for generating an album by arranging a plurality of images obtained by a digital camera in a desired layout. The present invention also relates to a computer-readable recording medium storing a program to cause a computer to execute the album generation method.
2. Description of the Related Art
Various methods of generating an album by arranging a plurality of images obtained by photographing in a desired layout have been proposed. For example, in a method proposed in Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 3(1991)-274047, images in frames of a film and photographing direction information recorded for each of the frames are read, and the images laid out on one sheet are printed by adjusting orientation of each of the frames based on the photographing direction information. Another method comprising the steps of reading photographing information recorded for each of frames at the time of photographing and laying out the information together with images of the frames to generate an album has also been proposed (Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 3(1991)-274857). Furthermore, a method of generating an album by arranging images owned by a user in a desired layout and by further inserting characters and items of clip art has been known (Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 7(1995)-184032). However, in these methods, the layout needs to be specified manually by a user, which leads to a complicated layout operation.
Therefore, another method of generating an album easing layout operation has been proposed (Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 10(1998)-51576). In this method, upon printing a plurality of images on one sheet for generating an album, a user specifies the images to be printed and a layout thereof by using a mark sheet or the like, and information specifying the images and the layout is obtained by reading the mark sheet. Based on the information, the images are read from a film and the album having the images laid out therein is generated. According to this method, the user can obtain the album having the images by only specifying the images to be printed and where the images are arranged in the album.
However, in the method described in Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 10(1998)-51576, the layout needs to be specified by a user. Since an impression of an album changes depending on how images are laid out therein, a user needs to spend time on a layout in order to obtain an album giving a preferable impression. If the user does not spend this time on the layout, only an album giving an ordinary impression is generated.